Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Some Great Little Books

I've spent a lot of time reading, thinking about and making books for children. My love and enjoyment of picture books has expanded in the past six years, as I've had the pleasure of field-testing some old and new favorites with my three little book-lovers. I put a lot of thought into choosing books for this list, with the aim of selecting those that could be enjoyed by boys
and girls (and their adults) with a broad range of interests and
backgrounds. Now, go read someone a story!

THE PICTURE BOOKS THAT MAIZ WISHES THAT ALL CHILDREN EVERYWHERE COULD HAVE IN THEIR LIBRARIES:

Madeline by Ludwig BemelmansThe Story About Ping by Marjorie Flack & Kurt WieseFerdinand by Munro Leaf / Robert Lawson, illus.
The Frog and Toad books by Arnold LobelBlueberries For Sal by Robert McCloskeyMake Way For Ducklings by Robert McCloskeyWinnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne / Ernest Shepard, illus.When We Were Very Young by A.A. Milne / Ernest Shepard, illus.
The Little Bear books by Else Holmelund Minarik / Maurice Sendak, illus.
Beatrix Potter books, especially: The Tale of Peter Rabbit, The Tale of Two Bad Mice, The Tale of Jeremy Fisher, The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck and The Tale of Squirrel NutkinThe Complete Adventures of Curious George by Margaret & H.A. ReyRichard Scarry's Cars and Trucks and Things That GoRichard Scarry's Best Storybook EverWhere the Wild Things Are by Maurice SendakThe Cat in the Hat by Dr. SeussOne Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish by Dr. SeussThe Sneeches and Other Tales by Dr. SeussSylvester and the Magic Pebble by William SteigHarry the Dirty Dog by Gene Zion / Margaret Bloy Graham, illus.

Okay, so those are what I consider to be the CLASSICS. My taste in
kids' books may seem a little old fashioned, but those are all
beautifully written and illustrated. They have a wide appeal, and
introduce readers to a great variety of words, ideas and lifestyles.
Here are some
more that I am also crazy about:

MORE BOOKS THAT MAIZ IS CRAZY ABOUT:

In the Town All Year 'Round by Rotraut Susanne BernerUp, Up, Up! It's Apple-Picking Time by Jody Fickes Shapiro / Kitty Harvill, illus.Traction Man is Here! by Mini GreyKitten's First Full Moon by Kevin HenkesThe Seven Silly Eaters by Mary Ann Hoberman / Marla Frazee, illus.Martha Speaks by Susan MeddaughThe Day the Babies Crawled Away by Peggy RathmannWild About Books by Judy Sierra / Marc Brown, illus.Doctor De Soto by William SteigShrek! by William SteigJoseph Had a Little Overcoat by Simms TabackOwl Moon by Jane Yolen / John Schoenherr illus.

Some notes on finding more: Many of these authors
have more great books out there, especially Steig, Sendak, Taback,
Henkes, Rathmann, Potter, Scarry and Seuss. Look for the originals, as
there are many not-so-good derivations of some of these classics,
especially of Curious George, Winnie-the-Pooh and Richard Scarry.

There are lots of places to find these books. If you can shop at an independent children's bookstore, lucky you! (There is a great one in LA called Children's Book World.) I hope you can also find them all for free at your local library.

We share so many of the same favorite books! Reading Winnie the Pooh was the first comforting activity Rainer would let me do for him when he was hospitalized a few weeks ago. It came with the iPhone (although we have a copy at home too), and it was so nice to have it at the ready.

I too love the Frog and Toad series and the William Steig books (and many more that you posted).

I adore the Francis books (Russel and Lilian Hoban). Highly recommended if you haven't read them!

Who IS this chick?

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